Sexual Harassment New Rules, Higher Stakes

You’ve drafted policies, posted notices and implemented training. Your work at protecting your company against sexual harassment should be complete, right? Think again.

Unfortunately, your work has just begun. Three recent Supreme Court rulings have increased employers’ liability and have deemed it necessary for you to not only beef up your policies, but to continually communicate them. Read "What You’re Liable For Now," to learn about your new responsibilities stemming from the court’s decisions.

The second article of this package recognizes that, despite a company’s best efforts, sexual harassment cases may still happen. And when they do happen, they’re costly. Employment practices liability insurance (EPLI) can help defray the costs. Get the facts on this important tool in "After Everything Else—Buy Insurance."

But your work isn’t only around ensuring that your company is legally compliant. Sexual harassment incidents leave everyone who has been touched by them—the claimant, the alleged harasser and the other employees who either witnessed or were asked to speak about the incident—raw and vulnerable. In "Don’t Forget the Emotional Stakes," you’ll read about the type of environment that needs to exist in order for healing to take place.

This package should give you a wealth of information on sexual harassment. But if you learn just one thing, make it be this: Keep sexual harassment on your radar screen. You can’t just implement policies, then sit back and relax. Unfortunately, the issue isn’t going away.